Over 150 copies sold!! This is an in-depth and detailed manual on acting for opera singers. Based on 45 years of performance and knowledge of opera, classically trained actor and director Norman Cooley has devised an acting training for opera singers. The book includes theory, supported by exercises, anecdotes as well as observations from operatic performances and rehearsals.Norman believes acting in opera should be completely integrated with the singing and support and empower the work of the singer, and should never hamper nor harm good singing technique. It should be as effortless as possible to provide a safe harbour for the singer to sing at their best while creating a fully satisfying performance.

"... a remarkable collection of observations and reflections on past experiences by many excellent artists and teachers that will doubtless help... those interested in creating 'opera magic.'" -- Tito Capobianco Singing, Acting, and Movement in Opera is designed for use in opera and musical theater workshops and by beginning professional singers. Drawing on years of research, teaching, and performing, Mark Ross Clark provides an overview of dramatic methodology for the singing actor, encouraging the student's active participation through practical exercises and application to well-known works. The Singer-getics method emphasizes integration of the various dimensions of opera performance, creating synergies among vocal performance, character development, facial expression, and movement on the stage. The book presents important information about stagecraft, characterization, posture, historical styles, performance anxiety, aria, and scene analysis. Excerpts from interviews with performers, directors, conductors, coaches, composers, and teachers offer insights and advice, allowing the reader to "meet the artists." An appendix by postural alignment specialist Emily Bogard describes techniques of relaxation and self-awareness for the performer. This lively book will appeal to students, teachers, professionals, and general readers alike.

Written to meet the needs of thousands of students and pre-professional singers participating in production workshops and classes in opera and musical theater, Acting for Singers leads singing performers step by step from the studio or classroom through audition and rehearsals to a successful performance. Using a clear, systematic, positive approach, this practical guide explains how to analyze a script or libretto, shows how to develop a character building on material in the score, and gives the singing performer the tools to act believably. More than just a "how-to" acting book, however, Acting for Singers also addresses the problems of concentration, trust, projection, communication, and the self-doubt that often afflicts singers pursuing the goal of believable performance. Part I establishes the basic principles of acting and singing together, and teaches the reader how to improvise as a key tool to explore and develop characters. Part II teaches the singer how to analyze theatrical work for rehearsing and performing. Using concrete examples from Carmen and West Side Story, and imaginative exercises following each chapter, this text teaches all singers how to be effective singing actors.

First Published in 1998. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The complete dramatic toolbox for the opera singer – a step-by-step guide detailing how to create character, from auditions through to rehearsal and performance and formulate a successful career. Drawing upon the innovative approach to the training of young opera singers developed by Martin Constantine, Co-Director of ENO Opera Works, The Opera Singer's Acting Toolkit leads the singer through the process of bringing the libretto and score to life in order to create character. It draws on the work of practitioners such as Stanislavski, Lecoq, Laban and Cicely Berry to introduce the singer to the tools needed to create an interior and physical life for character. The book draws on operatic repertoire from Handel through Mozart to Britten to present practical techniques and exercises to help the singer develop their own individual dramatic toolbox. The Opera Singer's Toolbox features interviews with leading conductors, directors, singers and casting agents to offer invaluable insights into the professional operatic world, and advice on how to remain focused on the importance of the work itself.

A Systematic Approach to Voice: The Art of Studio Application is a professional resource presenting a framework for the integration of science-informed principles of voice production and pedagogical application in the training of singers. Author Dr. Kari Ragan has spent years using this organizational template of the five voice systems—respiration, phonation, registration, articulation, and resonance—to identify technical challenges and design corrective vocal exercises in order to facilitate efficient singing. Each of the voice system chapters contains a brief overview of the mechanics as well as key points for teachers, or “teacher takeaways.” The book’s core offering is vocal exercises which, framed within a systematic approach, provide strategies for the art of studio application. The intent is an approach that leads to technically proficient singing working in service of great artistry. Key Features: * Over 85 vocal exercises for studio application framed within a systematic approach for both a CCM and classical aesthetic * Brief overview of the mechanics of each voice system and relevant “teacher takeaways” * Extensive discussion on semi-occluded vocal tract (SOVT) exercises * Introduction of several kinesthetic singing tools * Eight sample warm-up protocols designed for various levels of singers and both CCM and classical genres * Video demonstrations for each vocal exercise and sample warm-up

The complete dramatic toolbox for the opera singer – a step-by-step guide detailing how to create character, from auditions through to rehearsal and performance and formulate a successful career. Drawing upon the innovative approach to the training of young opera singers developed by Martin Constantine, Co-Director of ENO Opera Works, The Opera Singer's Acting Toolkit leads the singer through the process of bringing the libretto and score to life in order to create character. It draws on the work of practitioners such as Stanislavski, Lecoq, Laban and Cicely Berry to introduce the singer to the tools needed to create an interior and physical life for character. The book draws on operatic repertoire from Handel through Mozart to Britten to present practical techniques and exercises to help the singer develop their own individual dramatic toolbox. The Opera Singer's Acting Toolkit features interviews with leading conductors, directors, singers and casting agents to offer invaluable insights into the professional operatic world, and advice on how to remain focused on the importance of the work itself.

This remarkably illuminating portrait of Tennessee Williams lifts the veil on the heart and soul of his artistic inspiration: the unspoken collaboration between playwright and actor. At a low moment in Williams’s life, he summoned to New Orleans a young twenty-year-old writer, James Grissom, who had written him a letter asking for advice. After a long, intense conversation, Williams sent Grissom on a journey on his behalf to find out if he or his work had mattered to those who had so deeply mattered to him. Among the more than seventy women and men with whom Grissom talked were giants of American theater and film: Lillian Gish, (“the escort who brought me to Blanche”), Jessica Tandy (the original Blanche DuBois on Broadway), Eva Le Gallienne (“She was a stone against which I could rub my talent and feel that it became sharper”), Maureen Stapleton, Julie Harris, Bette Davis, Katherine Hepburn, Elia Kazan, Marlon Brando, John Gielgud, and many more. Follies of God provides dazzling insight into how Williams conjured the dramatic characters and plays that so transformed American theater.